APS Developer Cheat Sheet

Single-page reference for Autodesk Platform Services (APS) with RAPS CLI shortcuts

Last verified: January 2026

RAPS v4.2.1+

APS APIs: Auth v2, DM v1, MD v2, OSS v2, DA v3

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🔐 Authentication

OAuth Flow Comparison

2-Legged OAuth	3-Legged OAuth	RAPS Command
Use Case: Server-to-server	Use Case: User-facing apps	-
Context: App identity only	Context: User + app identity	-
BIM360/ACC: Limited access	BIM360/ACC: Full project access	-
Grant Type: `client_credentials`	Grant Type: `authorization_code`	-
Endpoint: `/authentication/v2/token`	Endpoint: `/authentication/v2/authorize` + `/token`	-
raps auth login	raps auth login --3legged	Default: 2-legged

Essential OAuth Scopes

Scope	Purpose	Required For	RAPS Usage
data:read	Read files/projects	Download, list contents	--scopes data:read
data:write	Modify metadata	Update file properties	--scopes data:read,data:write
data:create	Upload files	File uploads, folder creation	--scopes data:read,data:write,data:create
viewables:read	View models	Viewer SDK, derivatives	--scopes viewables:read
code:all	Design Automation	All DA operations	--scopes code:all

Token Lifecycle

Manual Process

• POST to /authentication/v2/token
• Store token + refresh logic
• Check expiry (1 hour default)
• Refresh when needed
• Handle auth errors manually

RAPS Equivalent

• raps auth login
• Automatic token management
• raps auth status
• raps auth refresh
• Built-in retry with refresh

📁 Data Management API

Project Hierarchy

Hub (Company/Account)
├── Project 1
│   ├── Folder A
│   │   ├── Item 1
│   │   │   ├── Version 1
│   │   │   └── Version 2 (latest)
│   │   └── Item 2
│   └── Folder B
└── Project 2

Common Endpoints

Operation	Manual API Call	RAPS Command
List Hubs	GET /project/v1/hubs	raps dm hubs
List Projects	GET /project/v1/hubs/{hub_id}/projects	raps dm projects
Upload File	Multi-step: Create storage → Upload → Create item → Create version	raps dm upload <file> --project <id>
Download File	GET /data/v1/projects/{project_id}/downloads + download URL	raps dm download <item_id>

URN Formats

OSS Object: urn:adsk.objects:os.object:{bucket}:{object}

Data Management: urn:adsk.wipprod:dm.lineage:{item_id}

Encoded URN: Base64 URL-safe encoding

Manual (error-prone):

echo -n "urn:adsk.objects..." | base64 | tr '+/' '-_' | tr -d '='

With RAPS:

raps urn encode "urn:adsk.objects:os.object:bucket/file.dwg"

🗄️ Object Storage Service (OSS)

Bucket Operations

Operation	RAPS Command
List Buckets	raps bucket list
Create Bucket	raps bucket create <name>
Bucket Details	raps bucket info <name>

Object Operations

Operation	RAPS Command
List Objects	raps oss list <bucket>
Upload Object	raps oss upload <file> <bucket>
Download Object	raps oss download <bucket> <object>

Bucket Naming Rules

✅ Allowed

• 3-128 characters
• Lowercase letters, numbers, hyphens
• Must start/end with letter or number

❌ Not Allowed

• Spaces, underscores, special chars
• Cannot look like IP address
• Uppercase letters

🔄 Model Derivative API

Translation Workflow

1. Upload to OSS or Data Management
2. Start Translation Job → GET Job Status (polling)
3. Translation Complete → Download Manifest
4. Extract Viewables/Properties

Translation Operations

Operation	RAPS Command
Start Translation	raps translate <urn> --formats svf2
Check Status	raps translate status <urn>
Wait for Completion	raps translate <urn> --wait
Get Properties	raps translate properties <urn>

Output Formats

svf2 Web viewer (modern)

pdf 2D drawings

obj 3D meshes

stl 3D printing

ifc Industry standard

Status Codes

pending Job queued

inprogress Processing

success Completed

failed Processing failed

⚠️ Common Error Codes

Code	API	Cause	RAPS Prevention
400	All	Invalid request format	Built-in validation
401	All	Authentication failed	raps auth refresh
403	All	Insufficient permissions	raps auth status --scopes
404	Model Derivative	URN not found	raps urn encode
429	All	Rate limit exceeded	Built-in rate limiting

📊 Rate Limits

API	Limit	Window	RAPS Handling
Authentication	500 requests/min	1 minute	Automatic token reuse
Data Management	100 requests/min	1 minute	Intelligent batching
Model Derivative	20 concurrent jobs	-	Queue management
OSS	500 requests/min	1 minute	Parallel optimization

🔧 Quick Setup Commands

First-Time Setup

# Install RAPS

# Windows: scoop install raps

# macOS: brew install raps

# Linux: cargo install raps-cli

# Initial authentication

raps auth login

# Test connectivity

raps auth status

raps dm projects --limit 1

Common Workflows

# File Upload → Translation → View

raps oss upload model.rvt mybucket

raps translate $(raps urn encode \

"urn:adsk.objects:os.object:mybucket:model.rvt") --wait

# Batch Operations

raps oss upload-batch *.dwg --bucket mybucket

raps translate-batch --bucket mybucket --formats svf2

🚨 Emergency Commands

Authentication Issues

raps auth refresh

raps auth login --force

raps auth status --verbose

Operation Failures

raps health check --comprehensive

raps logs --level error --last 1h

raps config set retry.max-attempts 5

💡 Pro Tips

• Use raps examples to see common workflow patterns
• Set up multiple profiles with raps auth login --profile <name>
• Enable verbose output with --verbose flag for debugging
• Check raps health check if anything isn't working